Tashi Rabgias (1927 - 30 October 2020) Indian scholar and historian who belonged to the Union Territory of Ladakh. He was a scholar of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. He commanded great expertise over the Bhoti language. He has many books to his credit. He has a collection of more than 200 folk songs for which he was awarded a Robe of Honour by the Art Culture and Language Department, Govt of Jammu and Kashmir. [1]
He was born in the Tukchu family of Sakti village in Leh. He had an inclination towards Buddhist philosophy and its ways of life from a very early age.
He completed his primary education from a Primary School in Chemde village and Secondary education from Sri Pratap College, Srinagar where he got his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1953.
In 1953, at the age of 27, he started his career as the first Personal Assistant to the first Deputy Minister of J&K Government, 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche for a period of four years. He has also worked as an Assistant Editor / Cultural Officer, Gangtok (Sikkim). He served as the incharge Ladakhi Programmer on Radio Kashmir Srinagar from 1960 to 1962. Later he was appointed a lecturer of Buddhist Studies at the University of Delhi in 1963. He also worked as Information Officer, J&K Government from 1964 to 1982. He has been involved in a wide array of social life, being the founder President of the Ladakh Cultural Forum, Leh. Besides, he has been the Secretary, Ladakh Buddhist Association for 7 years from 1964 to 1970. He was also associated with the Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi as a member of the General Council during the period 1998–2000. He also served as Education Officer in Ladakh Ecological Development Group (LeDeG), an NGO. He was one of the founding members of International Association for Ladakh Studies. He has a chair in the name of Gyalwa Lungchen Rabjam at the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies, Leh in recognition of his services to Buddhist studies.
His book "Kunsel Melong" is a study of the history of Ladakh from pre-historic times up to 1947. Apart from the regular political history it also contains many other aspects like the Buddha's teachings, economy, dynasty and religious history. He also started some newsletters titled Yargyas Kongphel and Temdel Sargyur in Bhoti language. Some of his major contributions are:
He was the patron of the International Association for Ladakh Studies for a few years.
Ladakh is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India and China since 1959. Ladakh is bordered by the Tibet Autonomous Region to the east, the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh to the south, both the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan to the west, and the southwest corner of Xinjiang across the Karakoram Pass in the far north. It extends from the Siachen Glacier in the Karakoram range to the north to the main Great Himalayas to the south. The eastern end, consisting of the uninhabited Aksai Chin plains, is claimed by the Indian Government as part of Ladakh, and has been under Chinese control since 1962.
Leh is a city in Indian-administered Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region. It is the largest city and the joint capital of Ladakh. Leh, located in the Leh district, was also the historical capital of the Kingdom of Ladakh. The seat of the kingdom, Leh Palace, the former residence of the royal family of Ladakh, was built in the same style and about the same time as the Potala Palace in Tibet. Since they were both constructed in a similar style and at roughly the same time, the Potala Palace in Tibet and Leh Palace, the royal residence, are frequently contrasted. It's crucial to keep in mind, though, that Leh Palace lacks the same grandeur and historical significance as the Potala Palace. Although the assertion regarding the architectural period and timeline is frequently made. Leh is at an altitude of 3,524 m (11,562 ft), and is connected via National Highway 1 to Srinagar in the southwest and to Manali in the south via the Leh-Manali Highway.
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Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) is an organization in Ladakh, India concerned with interests of Buddhists in Ladakh. It was founded in 1933 by King Jigmet Dadul Namgyal, Kalon Tsewang Rigzin, lachumir Munshi Sonam Tsewang and Kalon Bankapa Morup Gyaltsan
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Kacho Sikander Khan Sikander (1917-2007) was an eminent Indian writer from Kargil District of Ladakh. His work Qadeem Ladakh - Tarikh-o-Tamaddun is a major study of the history of Ladakh from the time people settled in the region up to the post-independent era.
The Central Institute of Buddhist Studies, formerly known as the School of Buddhist Philosophy, located in Leh town of Ladakh is a deemed university under Ministry of Culture. It was founded in 1959 and formerly affiliated to the Sampurnanand Sanskrit University in Varanasi.
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Sonam Wangchuk is an Indian engineer, innovator and education reformist. He is the founding-director of the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), which was founded in 1988 by a group of students who had been in his own words, the 'victims' of an alien education system foisted on Ladakh. He is also known for designing the SECMOL campus that runs on solar energy and uses no fossil fuels for cooking, lighting or heating.
Chering Dorjay is an Indian politician and was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Dorjay was a member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council from the Assembly Kashmir (Ladakh). He was Minister for Cooperatives and Ladakh Affairs in Jammu and Kashmir till 19 June 2018.
Jamyang Tsering Namgyal is an Indian politician and Member of Parliament from Ladakh, India's largest parliamentary seat geographically. Namgyal was elected, on 9 November 2018, to be the youngest and 8th Chief Executive Councillor (CEC) of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh. He belongs to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The culture of Ladakh refers to the traditional customs, belief systems, and political systems that are followed by Ladakhi people in India. The languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, food, and customs of the Ladakh region are similar to neighboring Tibet. Ladakhi is the traditional language of Ladakh. The popular dances in Ladakh include the khatok chenmo, cham, etc. The people of Ladakh also celebrate several festivals throughout the year, some of the most famous are Hemis Tsechu and Losar.
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